Think first. Then post

Despite the fact that Twitter upped its character limit from 140 to 280 a couple of years ago, getting a social media post perfect is important. It can be tempting to throw something together and forget about it. Sadly, this tends to be too many people’s social media strategy, and it’s not a very good one. Those few lines of text are extremely important and can make or break a company. Here are some questions you should ask yourself before you click that “post” button.

Has someone else read over it? When you’ve read two lines of text over and over, you’re bound to miss something. Typos are not a good thing. You lose a lot of credibility when you have the wrong there, their or they’re.

Are you the only one who thinks this is funny? A bad joke gone wrong can cause a lot of heartache. While humor is good, use it wisely. What is funny to you may not be funny to everyone else. Memes, in particular, should be used sparingly, especially given that they can be interpreted by different people in different ways.

Does it have a photo? With a few exceptions, your post should always contain a photo. Even on Twitter, photos help increase engagement and are more likely to be looked at. Images draw people in. It’s going to be what catches their eye and what makes them look at your post.

Ultimately, the one question you should always ask is how the post will impact your or your business’s image. Does it add value? Does it align with the company? What are you really trying to say? All-in-all, make sure you think before you post!